1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and system for using a touch screen as a conventional touch screen and also as a cryptographic Personal Identification Number (PIN) Entry Device (PED).
2. Description of the Prior Art
There are two defacto industry standards for user input in public access devices. The use of each standard depends on the application as each has a specific purpose. The two technologies are touch screen and a keyboard for entry of a personal identification number (PIN pad). Examples of touch screens include information kiosks, custom greeting card do-it-yourself terminals, fast food self-order terminals, etc. PIN pads may be used anywhere a debit card may be used such as grocery store checkout lane terminals, Automatic Teller Machines (ATM), and gasoline dispensers. Usually PIN pads are configured like a telephone key pad and the user enters an access code that is packaged and sent to a remote processor for validation.
Choosing one type of public device over the other means sacrificing functionality to the user. If a touch screen is selected, a debit card or any other payment method requiring an encrypted digital signature such as passive debit cards cannot be accepted for payment at the terminal. The reason for this is security. Any machine that requires an encrypted digital signature such as a user's personal identification code must include security measures to prevent unauthorized access to the code. On the other hand, if a PIN pad is chosen, the user must translate a request for input from a screen to input on a numeric keypad. This type of interface is non-intuitive to the user as it diverges from the familiar point-and-click interaction model of modern applications.
To overcome the shortcomings of each, many systems include both a touch screen and a keypad. This combination of an interface is also non-intuitive to the user as some input is entered on the touch screen and other input is entered on the keypad.